Genesis 1.1 VS Wilson X2 Alexandria

[NorthStar]

Hey Bob i belong to many forums and because of my moniker ( MrAcoustat ) i get lot's of private messages for Acoustat information and most of those message get rerouted to Jocelyn because when it come's to technical stuff I DON'T KNOW MUCH.

-----I see. ...Like an intermediary. :b

 

[audioarcher]

Hi guys, My Innersound Kayas have wings that go backwards to combat cancelation. For some reason the new Sanders Sound speakers don't have that feature. I also have them 6' + from the back wall as well. I just recently bought some Yucca Cane plants for diffusion behind the speakers and that was a real nice improvement.

Sean

 

[rbbert]

IMO the Saunders ESL has managed the bass integration and resulting increased dynamics better than the other hybrid 'stat makers. My big reservation about them is the very specific small listening "sweet spot". I know he generally prefers a diagonal room setup (unlike above), which may help that a little.

 

[MylesBAstor]

A

IMO the Saunders ESL has managed the bass integration and resulting increased dynamics better than the other hybrid 'stat makers. My big reservation about them is the very specific small listening "sweet spot". I know he generally prefers a diagonal room setup (unlike above), which may help that a little.

Also, there's no imaging beyond the outer edge of the speaker. A bit disconcerting and at times, everything sound smooshed up between the speakers IMHO.

 

[NorthStar]

...Just look at the wood side panels from the rear; it restricts the dipolar dispersion at the sides.

Good, bad? It depends of the listener and his room.

* Diagonal room position; I like that. :b

Sean, no negativity meant, simply some honest observations. ...Luv those plants.

 

[audioarcher]

IMO the Saunders ESL has managed the bass integration and resulting increased dynamics better than the other hybrid 'stat makers. My big reservation about them is the very specific small listening "sweet spot". I know he generally prefers a diagonal room setup (unlike above), which may help that a little.

Yes, the small sweet spot is what turns most people off. I don't have a problem with it. It also has the benifit of less reflections of the side walls.

The bass integration is better than any other hybrid I'm aware of. I don't hear the crossover at all myself.

Sean

 

[audioarcher]

A

Also, there's no imaging beyond the outer edge of the speaker. A bit disconcerting and at times, everything sound smooshed up between the speakers IMHO.

This is simply untrue. These speakers image to the outside of the panels. I have read this before and believed it for awhile untill I moved the speakers closer to each other and still had images out side the panels.

As to positioning the speakers diagonally to get smoother bass response this is no different than any other speaker out there. I think Roger does himself a disservice by setting them up that way at shows. Because now everybody thinks they have to be set up that way to sound good which is not true. It is true the bass may benifit from it but so would most other speakers out there. If your room is poorly shaped or square it makes more sense. IMO a symmetrical setup will sound more balanced.

 

[MylesBAstor]

This is simply untrue. These speakers image to the outside of the panels. I have read this before and believed it for awhile untill I moved the speakers closer to each other and still had images out side the panels.

As to positioning the speakers diagonally to get smoother bass response this is no different than any other speaker out there. I think Roger does himself a disservice by setting them up that way at shows. Because now everybody thinks they have to be set up that way to sound good wihich is not true. It is true the bass may benifit from it but so would most other speakers out there. If your room is poorly shaped or square it makes more sense. IMO a semetrical setup will sound more balanced.

Sorry to disagree, have even talked to Roger about it and he agrees. He says just space them further apart if you want a wider soundstage. (BTW, had several friends that owned them.) Every review has mentioned it also.

 

[audioarcher]

...Just look at the wood side panels from the rear; it restricts the dipolar dispersion at the sides.

Good, bad? It depends of the listener and his room.

* Diagonal room position; I like that. :b

Sean, no negativity meant, simply some honest observations. ...Luv those plants.

Not sure about the wings effect on the sound as I can not remove them.

I don't have the space in my room to do a diagonal setup without compromising the space behind the speakers and behind my head. Which IMO is more important.

Thanks, the plants are pretty cool looking and very effective at diffusion behind the speakers. The sound is more realistic now and more integrated.

Sean

 

[audioarcher]

Sorry to disagree, have even talked to Roger about it and he agrees. He says just space them further apart if you want a wider soundstage. (BTW, had several friends that owned them.) Every review has mentioned it also.

No problem. I know I'm not imagining it in my room. YMMV.:b

 

[NorthStar]

-----Sean, looking at your room and your listening chair, they look perfectly positioned. :b

 

[audioarcher]

Sorry, I realize a have hijacked this thread a little.

I have heard both the Wilson Alexandria X2 and XLF at Definitive Audio and the Genesis 1.2 at Gary's factory.

I am not a big Wilson fan. That said I have heard the Alexandria X2 sound good with VTL gear a few years ago. Most recently I heard the XLF with Dan D'Augtino amps fed straight from a digital source (can't remember which one). This setup sounded very good and was something I could live with.

The Genesis 1.2 were in a very large warehouse. They did some things very well but there were things that were not quite right. Gary's own observations are right on so I assume if they were in an appropriate sized room they would sound awesome. It would be very interesting to hear them in a home environment.

It's hard to pick a winner here. If I had a big enough room I might lean towards the Genesis 1.2. With the right associated gear and room either one could be great. Not that I'm in a possition to buy either one.

I'm actually quite happy with my setup now so I'm not too worried about it.

Sean

 

[NorthStar]

-----Me, if I had the dough, and the row, I'd go with Magico. ...Q7 :b

 

[audioarcher]

-----Me, if I had the dough, and the row, I'd go with Magico. ...Q7 :b

If I had that much dough I would try all sorts of different stuff. Scaena, Lansche with the plasma tweeters,and maybe some big horns like Acapella Trilons to name a few. Heck why not have a few different systems at once. Jeeves, go get the system in the west wing warmed up please.:b

 

[MylesBAstor]

If I had that much dough I would try all sorts of different stuff. Scaena, Lansche with the plasma tweeters,and maybe some big horns like Acapella Trilons to name a few. Heck why not have a few different systems at once. Jeeves, go get the system in the west wing warmed up please.:b

I'm with you! Throw in the Wilson's, Evolution Acoustics, Hansens, NOLAs, Ventures, TADs, etc.

 

[rbbert]

...Thanks, the plants are pretty cool looking and very effective at diffusion behind the speakers. The sound is more realistic now and more integrated.

Sean

Don't let Ethan read about this

 

[NorthStar]

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[audioarcher]

Don't let Ethan read about this

The drawback is you need to provide enough light for them to live. Kind of hard to do that in a basement or room with small windows. Unless you install grow lights.

Hope I have adequate light for them. It's pretty cloudy here in western Washington.

 

[LL21]

I will say, i have really enjoyed reading through this post and pretty much everyone's queries, opinoins and answers. My own personal observations on a few things said here:

1. For the money, panels can be incredible bargains depending on what you are looking for in a speakers. i think because of their technology, they seem able to do things at a lower price point than their cone counterparts at the same pricepoint. The Maggie MMG, 1.7, Quads 2805s, the old Apogee Stages...these are speakers that have a magic about their space, midrange, air that you have to spend quite a bit of money to get in a cone (imho).
2. The key is that once you find a cone (for more money) that matches these speakers...you are also probably getting slam, major dynamics and a fuller deeper register.
3. Once you then decide to go back to panels to match this more expensive cone speaker...by buying a bigger panel, you are getting a REALLY BIG PANEL!
4. Personally, I love panels...always have. I nearly bought the Apogee Stages years ago third-hand...a bargain in retrospect but i could not swing $1000 when i was just out of school. For $1000 i could not find any cone that did what the Stages did.
5. At the same time, now that i have big Wilsons, i find them to have a 'comparable' though not equal alacrity with enormous effortless power and slam. And to get panels that match that effortless slam...well, as Gary says, i do not have the room...few of us do.
6. And that is where i am most impressed by Wilson. Even though they are 6 feet tall, the footprint of a Wilson is about 2 feet by 2.5 feet...it can work in many kinds of rooms, but you BETTER know how to set them up. But when you do, they are remarkable in what they can do in a (relatively) practical size/shape.

Finally, i would love to hear Genesis speaker by Gary...and would love have a room (and the money!) and be able to call him up one day and say...i want to hear the mighty 1.2s because i think i'm buying!

Gary - the photo of your client's room with your speakers is awesome. Those were 1.2s cut down to be custom-fitted into the room?

 

[rbbert]

http://www.gikacoustics.com/education_diffusion.html